


Worth It All (All Apologies to O. Henry)

by WhyTheHandbasket



Category: Free!
Genre: Anniversary, Gift Giving, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-01
Updated: 2016-01-01
Packaged: 2018-05-10 23:02:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5604238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhyTheHandbasket/pseuds/WhyTheHandbasket
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Makoto and Haru are living in Tokyo, chasing their dreams. <br/>Unfortunately, that means they don't have much money.<br/>With their second wedding anniversary coming up, how will they cope?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Worth It All (All Apologies to O. Henry)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Einzel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Einzel/gifts).



> Ok, this is a strange takeoff on a O. Henry story (which is much better, read that instead of this!)
> 
> It's for Einzel, who is both brilliant, and a sweetheart.  
> I hope you like this!

Haru woke slowly, snuggling closer to his husband. Makoto was on his side, and Haru was wrapped around his back, curling protectively over his spine, burying his face between his shoulder blades. This was his favorite way to sleep; it was like sleeping with the best teddy bear ever. Additionally, it gave him the chance to make sure he was ok; if Makoto had a nightmare, Haru would know. Makoto wasn’t good about telling him things like that, he never had been. He preferred to keep his hurt and stresses to himself, presenting to the world his best facade. That even extended to Haru, to some extent. Haru knew he’d do it more if he could get away with it, but Makoto was not good enough to fool his husband for long, if at all.

Haru let his mind drift, sleepily, along whatever paths it wanted. He knew he had to get up soon, practice started in a couple of hours, but he was content to lay in bed for a while, just thinking and warm. He remembered something, something that had been nagging at the edges of his mind, looking for attention. Their second wedding anniversary was coming up. He considered, trying to think of something he could get for Makoto that he wouldn’t get for himself that they could afford. There wasn’t much; they were living on his stipend from the Japanese Swim Team and Makoto’s teaching income. They could both be making much more money, but Makoto wanted to stick to teaching children, and Haru, well, he was content just swimming—he didn’t want the notoriety that endorsements and advertising can bring. It was bad enough at the training facilities, he couldn’t imagine how bad it would get if his face was plastered on the side of a bus or something. He wasn’t Rin; he didn’t want the attention.

However, he still wanted to do something for Makoto, who’d done so much, sacrificed so much for him. He knew that Makoto had been feeling lonely recently—his training took up the greater part of the day, and Makoto’s teaching was generally in the afternoons and evenings, so recently they hadn’t had much time to spend together. _How can I get us more time? Maybe we should go somewhere, go away on vacation or something. I have some free time coming up in a couple of months._ He decided that he was going to do exactly that, plan a trip for them, get away and spend some time together like they used to.

_How do I pay for this?_ He knew his meager funds would not stretch to the trip he wanted to give Makoto, but he was sure there was _something_ they could do. He’d just have to ask an expert, so he made a mental note to call Rei later in the day, get some suggestions. Decision made, he snuggled his face back into Makoto’s spine and fell asleep.

 

Makoto felt Haru snuggle up into him, and lay as still as he could, not wanting to disturb his boy. He knew that he was still tired; he trained so hard. He lay there, thinking about their anniversary, trying to think of something that he could manage within his income. He saw how hard Haru was working at his sport, but he was afraid that he was losing something vital in the process. He seemed to Makoto to almost be going through the motions, that Haru was finding his love of swimming slipping away since he’d got pro. _Haru was starting to no longer love swimming._ That thought terrified Makoto, he knew what a vital role the water played in Haru’s world, and the idea that he would somehow not only stop loving it, but possibly begin to resent it, was scary. He decided it was his responsibility to prevent that.

Thinking, he realized that Haru no longer swam just to feel the water—every time he went to the natatorium, he was all business, just doing the prescribed amount of warm-up and laps, listening and adjusting and practicing as demanded by his coaches. Haru, Makoto realized, needed to swim again. He needed a place to just float, or swim, or soak, whatever he wanted, without the judging eyes on him like they were whenever he went to the training pool. That’s what Makoto wanted to give Haru for their anniversary—the gift of a membership at a local swim club, one that he could swim at with impunity. Those were more than he could currently afford, though, and he wasn’t quite sure how he was going to swing it. Thinking about this, he realized he should probably speak to Gou, she’d have some ideas, she was active in the training community and could help. Decision made, he snuggled back into his husband and drifted off to sleep.

 

* * *

 

 

Two days later, after speaking with Rei and Rin, Haru walked into his manager’s office, shut the door behind himself, and said, “Ok, I’ll do it...but here’s how it’s going to work.”

 

Three days after that, after consulting Gou and the internet, Makoto made a phone call. “Hello? Coach Iwazumi? This is Tachibana Makoto. I’d like to accept your offer, can we discuss the details?”

 

* * *

 

On the day of their anniversary, Haru left practice early, and stopped at the grocery store to get the things he needed to make dinner. He deliberately turned his eyes away from the mackerel, and bought the ingredients for green curry with a chocolate mousse for dessert. They didn’t often splurge like this, but it was their anniversary, so he threw some steak in the cart as well; they both needed the protein.

At home, he started the prep, quickly getting the mousse into the fridge before starting on dinner. Makoto wouldn’t be home for an hour, so he had plenty of time. He got everything prepped and the green curry cooking, then he dug out the tablecloth and candlesticks and set the table. Making sure the envelope containing Makoto’s gift was on the table he returned to the kitchen, watching the clock. He got to a good stopping place and headed into the shower, dressing himself in a button down and slacks; he wanted to look good for Makoto on this, their special night. Returning to the kitchen, he donned an apron and continued to cook.

Makoto stopped for four things on the way home: a bottle of wine, a bouquet of flowers, a card, and a nice mackerel fillet. He bought the wine because Haru asked him to, the flowers and the card were for Haru, and the mackerel fillet was because Makoto knew he’d be making green curry, and he wanted his husband to eat his favorite thing for their anniversary dinner as well.

Walking into the house, he toed off his shoes and hung up his bag, carrying the things he purchased into the house. He walked into the kitchen and set the bag on the counter, pulling out the flowers. Haru was at the stove and Makoto walked up behind him, slipping his arms around his waist.

“Happy anniversary, Haru.” He spoke in his ear, bringing the flowers around so Haru could see them. Haru spun around in his arms and gave him a small grin.

Leaning up, he kissed Makoto on the cheek. “Happy anniversary, Makoto. Those are lovely; can you please put them in water and on the table?” Makoto bent in for a real kiss, and Haru obliged. Pulling back, Haru shooed at him, getting him out of the kitchen. “Go do something for a bit, dinner will be in 15 minutes or so.” Makoto grabbed the bag off the counter and deposited the bottle of wine there. Opening it so it could breathe, he dug out the vase and fixed the flowers, arranging them nicely. Right before he left the kitchen, he remembered the mackerel. “Hey, Haru?” he caught his boy’s attention.

Haru looked at him with a raised eyebrow, and Makoto handed over the mackerel. “Happy Anniversary. You should cook it so you can have your favorite, too.” Haru looked at the mackerel, and then looked at Makoto, eyes gleaming.

He set the mackerel down, and stepped over to Makoto. Wrapping his arms around Makoto’s neck, he pulled him into a kiss, a real one. A kiss that spoke of love and home and affection and everything that was _them_. Drawing back eventually, Haru looked at Makoto, seeing the smudges of stress under his eyes, but also the love and affection in those green eyes he’d been in love with as long as he could remember. “Thank you. Thank you for the mackerel and the flowers, and thank you for loving me. I adore you, Tachibana Makoto.” He didn’t say such things often or easily, but he knew that Makoto needed to hear them, and whatever Makoto needed, Haru was determined to provide.

Makoto melted, knowing how hard saying these things were for Haru, especially in the middle of the day—emotions are much easier expressed in the dark of the night. He slid his hands around his waist, slipping his fingers along the smoothness of Haru’s shirt, feeling the warmth of his skin through the cotton. “It’s certainly my pleasure, Nanase Haruka. You’re it for me, you always were, and always will be. Thank you for loving me, for watching out for me. You’ve literally saved me more than once, and I hope you continue to do so.” He smiled gently at that face he’d learned to love so long ago, his best friend, always his best friend, now his love, maybe always his love. Leaning in for one more, gentle kiss, he stepped away. “I’m going to hop into the shower; I’ll only be a few minutes.” Makoto left the kitchen, leaving Haru to continue the dinner prep.

They sat down together, candlelight and flowers, good plates and cloth napkins. Eating together, they chatted about their day, about the neighbors and friends, until dessert. Haru brought out the mousse and laid that and a card at Makoto’s place; sitting down, he saw a card on his place mat. They looked at each other and smiled, once again in harmony, no surprises there.

Makoto motioned for Haru to open his first. “Please, Haru, you’ve been working so hard. Open yours, I want you to.” Haru conceded with a nod of his head, and pulled out the card. As he opened it to read the sentiment inside, a small plastic card fell out. He picked it up and looked at it closely; it was a pass to the local swim club. Shooting Makoto a confused glance, he read the card.

Haru-

            I love you, and I love the way you are working so hard to accomplish your goals. I’m hoping this will help you retain the love for the water. Yours always, Makoto

 

Haru looked up and met Makoto’s eyes, reading in them the worry and concern he’d been hiding, as well as the love and understanding. He instantly knew what Makoto was talking about, and felt his eyes well up a bit. “I hadn’t even noticed. Thank you for seeing what I couldn’t. This is a brilliant idea. How can we afford this, though?” Makoto just grinned and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Well, you know how I’ve wanted to stick to teaching kids? I got an offer from Coach Iwazumi to do some coaching for some older athletes, high school kids who are serious, and took it. It’s going to eat up my time for the next while, but it’s worth it for you to have someplace you can go swim in peace, without anyone watching you.”

“Are you sure about this? You wanted to teach children only.” Haru searched his face, looked into his eyes, looking for any sign of regret or sadness, finding nothing but love and understanding.  

Makoto reassured him, “Yes, for you to have what you need, I’d do a lot worse, Haru.” Haru smiled, softly.

“Ok, then. Thank you for this, it’s the most thoughtful thing anyone has done for me.” He motioned to the unopened card by Makoto’s bowl. Open yours.”

Makoto opened his card, and saw a folded up printout inside. Opening it, he saw that there was an itinerary, four days and nights at Katsatsu Onsen, scheduled for the middle of next month when Haru had a break. He gently set the paper to one side and read the note inside the card.

Makoto-

            I know you’ve been missing our together time, so I thought that it would be a good idea for us to get away for a bit. I have some downtime coming up, and I’d love to spend it with you. I love you, Happy Anniversary

                                    -Haru

 

Makoto smiled at his husband, tears in his eyes. “This is...this is amazing, Haru. How can we afford this?” He watched Haru squirm a bit, before he gathered his nerve and spoke.

“Well, you know how I’ve been turning down all those endorsement deals? I took one.” Makoto took in a sharp breath, knowing how much Haru hated the idea of putting himself out there so publicly. “No, it’s fine. I thought about it a lot, and spoke to Rin to see how he handles things, and I told my agent that I’d only do a limited number of them, and that I’d want the right of refusal. The first one was a photo shoot for goggles; it wasn’t as bad as I thought. Rin was there too, so that helped.”

Looking at his boy closely, Makoto didn’t see any signs of distress, and he’d not noticed that he was stressed recently, so he took his word for it. “Well, thanks then, I love you for putting yourself out there.”

He stood and pulled Haru into his arms, snuggling them together. Lifting his chin, Makoto kissed Haru deeply. “Let’s get the dishes later…” he whispered, diving in for another kiss. Haru hummed his agreeance, tugging on the hem of Makoto’s shirt, seeking skin. Together, they made their way to the next part of the celebration.

 

* * *

 

 

Later, much later, after the dishes were washed and they were watching television, Haru lying on top of Makoto on their sofa, Makoto had a thought. “When were those tickets for?” he asked, sitting up enough to dislodge Haru.

Haru grunted in disapproval, but answered as he sat up. ‘The 20th thru the 24th of next month, why?”

Makoto sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. “And you’re off why?”

“The National High School championships are scheduled at our training facility.” Haru was beginning to see the issue. “And you have to be at those, right?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, Haru, we can reschedule?”

“I don’t know when we’ll have a chance again.” Haru thought, furiously. “How about we just plan on days that we spend together? We can be tourists in Tokyo, go to an onsen for a day or do something else, just us, at least every other week. We can coordinate our days off at least that much.”

“You’re brilliant. That’s perfect, that may be an even better solution, I get to spread you out over time. Thank you, Haru, you’re the best.” Makoto laid his head on Haru’s shoulder, snuggling in.

“Now can you lay back down? I was comfortable.” Haru demanded with a smirk.

Makoto laughed and agreed, and they resumed their positions, content.

 

* * *

 

 

Omake

As he walked into the pool area of the swim club, Haru felt eyes upon him, more so than usual. He jumped into the water and started his routine of just floating, just feeling the water, stresses of the day and of training melting off, strength and peace replacing them. After his normal soak, he stepped out of the pool, again feeling like he was being watched. However, it wasn’t the analytical watching he was used to from the natatorium; it was gentler, more protective, giving him a feeling of belonging rather than of judgement. Looking around, he didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, so he shrugged mentally and went to change to go home.

As he walked out the door of the locker room, he saw the ad on the wall, the one for Mizu goggles. They’d clearly just put it up, and it was clearly him. _Well, there goes this swim club...guess I’ll have to find another._ He sighed and opened the door, prepared to leave. As he headed out, the owner called him over from behind the desk.

“Nanase-san, I wanted to reassure you. I understand why you come here when you must be working so hard at the national natatorium, your love for the water is clear. While you’re here, I will make sure that nobody bothers you or intrudes in any way, and if you’d prefer, I will take down that advertisement. I just wanted you to know that we know who you are, and it doesn’t matter—as long as you’re here you are one of us, a water lover.”

Haru smiled slightly, and spoke. “Thank you for that. I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t worry about the poster, its fine.”

He walked out the door and smiled to himself, having come to the realization that both of their gifts were...not for naught, but somehow offset by the sacrifices made to obtain the other’s gift. _Kind of like that story, the one we read in English class. I’ll have to tell Makoto about this, he’ll love it._

Heading into the night, he knew that whatever the cost, the gifts they’d given and been given were worth everything.  

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments, kudos, etc always welcome!


End file.
